Supreme Court's rulings put state on notice

HARRISBURG — Gay marriage may be coming to a courthouse or church near you, but the timetable for such is uncertain.

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By GARY JOSEPH WILSON

poconorecord.com

By GARY JOSEPH WILSON

Posted Jul. 1, 2013 at 12:01 AM

By GARY JOSEPH WILSON

Posted Jul. 1, 2013 at 12:01 AM

» Social News

HARRISBURG — Gay marriage may be coming to a courthouse or church near you, but the timetable for such is uncertain.

State Rep. Dan Frankel, D-Allegheny, said gay marriage eventually will be legal in Pennsylvania. Frankel's prediction came after the U.S. Supreme Court delivered gay rights advocates their biggest court victory in history.

The court's rulings in two cases placed the subject firmly in the Keystone State's consciousness. Gay rights advocates say they are hopeful the increased media attention will further their cause.

But marriage equality is "still a heavy lift" in Pennsylvania, according to Frankel.

The representative urged advocates to work for "civil rights protections," which gay people lack under Pennsylvania law.

Frankel was cautious about the timeline for marriage equality, saying the state "will be late to the game, as we are in many of these progressive issues" but that "at some point in time, there will be marriage equality in Pennsylvania."

"I think the Supreme Court decision just energizes those of us who think this is something we ought to be moving forward on," Frankel said.

But as far as the politics of legalizing gay marriage go, "heavy lift may be an understatement," said Terry Madonna, a pollster and professor of political science at Franklin and Marshall College.

Madonna said he suspects the Supreme Court will rule on statewide bans of gay marriage before the Pennsylvania Legislature addresses the issue.

A Franklin and Marshall poll taken in May showed 54 percent of state voters polled support gay marriage. Pollsters talked to 526 registered voters for the survey, which has a margin of error of plus or minus 4.3 percent.

Madonna cited this poll as evidence "voters are ahead of lawmakers" on the issue.

The two rulings Wednesday also may suggest the Supreme Court is ahead of lawmakers on the issue as well.

In the first case, the Court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act by a 5-4 vote.

The Defense of Marriage Act required the federal government to withhold any marriage benefits, such as tax breaks, from legally married same-sex couples.

In the second case, the Court was tasked with determining if the 14th amendment prevents states from defining marriage as a union between a man and a woman. The justices declined to rule definitively on the matter. However, as a practical result of the ruling, marriage equality was affirmed in California but not nationwide.

The two rulings were met with widespread acclaim across the country, but will have little practical effect on Pennsylvania residents.

Gov. Tom Corbett and the Republican majorities in the General Assembly do not figure to move quickly toward changing the rules for marriage in Pennsylvania.

In an email, Janet Kelley, a spokeswoman for Corbett said "the court's ruling clearly supports the power of states to regulate domestic relations issues such as marriage'' and that the "governor supports Pennsylvania law on marriage which is plainly defined as 'one man and one woman taking each other as for husband and wife.'"

State Rep. Brian Sims, D-Philadelphia, the first openly gay lawmaker elected to Pennsylvania's General Assembly, hailed the ruling for recognizing the validity and dignity of thousands of Pennsylvanian's relationships.

"The Supreme Court has spelled out in no uncertain terms that the LGBT community is deserving of respect under the law and that when legislatures use state law to punish and discriminate against LGBT people, those laws will be found unconstitutional," he said.